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New Criminal Laws of Florida 2025

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With the recent end to the Florida legislative session, the Governor of Florida has signed into law 174 bills sent to him for review and approval. Several of the news laws, which will take effect either July 1 or October 1 of this year, deal with criminal law statutes. A few of the new criminal laws for 2025 are the following:

  1. Effective October 1 , Florida House Bill 113 creates harsher penalties for those who flee from law enforcement. More specifically, the new law increases the ranking for the following offenses on the offense severity ranking chart under Florida’s punishment code:

    Offense & Change
    Fleeing/eluding law enforcement in a patrol vehicle with siren and lights activated while driving at high speed Level 4 —> Level 5

    Aggravated fleeing/attempting to elude when leaving the scene of a crash and causing injury to person or property Level 5 —> Level 6



    Higher scores on the chart can raise the minimum possible sentence that a person can receive upon conviction

  2. Effective October 1 , Florida House Bill 253 makes several changes to state statutes regarding motor vehicle offenses. These changes include the following:

    Offense & New Rule
    Driver uses prohibited lights or tries to pull another car over becomes a
    third-degree felony.

    Noncriminal traffic infraction where a driver purposefully alters or covers up a license plate or vehicle registration certificate now is a second-degree misdemeanor.

    A person buys or owns a device to obscure his/her license plate is now prohibited and is a second-degree misdemeanor.

    Person makes or sells a device to obscure license plates is now prohibited and a first-degree misdemeanor.
  3. Effective July 1 , Florida House Bill 351 establishes a new crime under Florida law: “dangerous excessive speeding.” The offense refers to situations where drivers:

    Go at least 50 mph over the speed limit
    Speed at 100 mph or more in a way that threatens the people or property
    around them.
    Under this law, first-time violators can receive up to 30 days in jail and a fine of up to $500. Subsequent offenses can yield up to 90 days in jail and a fine of up to $1,000.

If you are in need of a criminal defense attorney in the Volusia County, Florida area, please give our office a call. There is no charge for the initial consultation.